Friday, 23 April 1999

WEEKEND REVIEW

A new weekend is here and I don't see any threat to the top flicks of last weekend, Life and The Matrix. But there will be intrigue. At least if you find this stuff remotely interesting. And much of that intrigue will have to wait for today's Box Office Extra, where I will have screen counts fully accessible for analysis. For instance, I don't expect Election to be a box office threat this weekend, because last I was told, the film was opening in just a few theaters this weekend and going wide next weekend. But until Paramount gives Exhibitor Relations a count, I'm not so sure. The film is easily the best film from MTV Films so far and is one of the best "teen movies" of this most recent run of the most maligned of genres that isn't porno. I think it's time for all of us to start paying a little more attention to these movies, because even though they are proliferating faster than earth-threatening meteors, there is some real quality now and again. Election offers the most complete performance yet by Reese Witherspoon. (I'd say the best performance, but in movies like Pleasantville, she was hampered by characters who never quite paid off. Not her fault. For another instance, one of my favorite R.W. performances is in the virtually unreleased Overnight Delivery, a deeply flawed movie with a stand-out performance.)

Matthew Broderick hasn't had this solid and simple a performance since The Freshman in 1990. (Again, not his fault. He has moments in The Night We Never Met and The Road to Wellville and even The Cable Guy that really make you wish for a better role for Broderick.) And you have to start getting excited about Alexander Payne. As uneven as Citizen Ruth was, he's shown an interest and significant skill in mixing real issues with comedy genre conventions. I hope that this film succeeds so that Payne has the studio backing to continue his filmmaking journey. My gut says that he's just going to get better and better. I also want to mention Chris Klein, Jessica Campbell and Frankie Ingrassia, who all give unexpectedly subtle and effective performances. I'm not 100 percent sure that Paramount knows how to sell this movie, but I hope they have now figured it out ("Reading, Writing, Revenge" is the new tag. Com-si, Com-sah. Sorry, not sure how to spell in Italian.) It's not Ferris Bueller's Day Off, so don't expect the big fireworks. But this movie deserves your attention.

Pushing Tin is another film that just isn't getting enough of a push to really impact the marketplace. The difference is, this one isn't very good. It is often entertaining, but smells of a lack of focus throughout. I personally feel that Billy Bob Thornton's performance is his most nuanced and natural, far more complex than something like A Simple Plan, which to me was all about fake teeth and slow talking. Not that I thought that was a bad performance, but as the columnist version of the Bulgarian judge, I'm taking off a few more points than the other judges for a lack of complex moves, however perfect the routine. The film gives confirmation of the talent of Cate Blanchett and Angelina Jolie, though neither is really challenged here. And John Cusack is still the most underutilized actor in America. Wait. Did I say that? Wow. I guess I did. Cusack has really grown on me over the years and it is quite frustrating that he can't seem to find the right projects. So much so, he really seems to be a box office kiss of death. (He and Broderick and career-challenged Bridget Fonda all grace The Road to Wellville, as well as a great turn by a then-unknown Camryn Manheim, Dana Carvey's only real attempt to act and one of my time capsule roles by Anthony Hopkins, who bravely channels the Quik bunny. Deeply imperfect and one of my guilty pleasures.) Maybe Cusack's just too smart for his own good. Happens all the time, though most actors don't get as many shots at the brass ring. Cusack keeps getting shots, I think, because he is so compelling. But this one's not going to change your life.

Lost and Found is likely the widest new opening. And the stupidest. I still haven't seen the movie, so maybe I'm being too judgmental, but didn't David Spade see Dirty Work? That was the movie also featuring Artie Lange as sidekick to a loser who needs a gimmick to meet women. Didn't Sophie Marceau get the memo that explained that having your male co-star in make-up and hair longer than you, especially when they don't wear a hair piece and they aren't Mel Gibson, is a danger sign? And Warner Bros., if your male lead sits in your female lead's lap and people think "ventriloquist" and not "sex," you have a problem. Of course, this film will probably open, despite all the warning signs. But at least it will go away quickly.

Also new and in limited theaters are David Cronenberg's Existenz. Cronenberg is an interesting enough director that there seems little point in dissecting him until I've actually seen the movie. I'll get back to you. And speaking of kink, The Mighty Peking Man is hitting the Midnight Movie circuit and the circuit may hit back. I kept waiting to see the shadows of the MST3K team show up to throw some of the comments out that I was thinking. A press screening is not a midnight movie experience, so I suspect that it will be more fun in a theater near you. The film is a mix of King King and Godzilla with the cheesiest effects ever and a performance by Evelyne Kraft that marks her as Bo Derek before Derek became a 10. Very sexy and funny, even when unintentional. (As it turns out, she's now a very sexy 40-something, who left the business shortly after making this groaner and is quite amused that it's being re-released.) And you could make a drinking game out of her breasts' on-again-off-again relationship with her bikini top. Next week, I'll be launching a contest for some signed posters and programs from this bit on international silliness.

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